


Shots

by Earthsbestdefender



Series: 911 + 911 lone star stories [2]
Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Active Shooter Situation, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, TK Strand Needs A Hug, carlos needs a hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:55:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23315002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Earthsbestdefender/pseuds/Earthsbestdefender
Summary: There's an active shooter in downtown Austin, and Carlos is one of the responding officers.
Relationships: Carlos Reyes/TK Strand
Series: 911 + 911 lone star stories [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1668355
Comments: 8
Kudos: 300





	Shots

“What’s going on?” TK asks as he pulls the fridge door open and grabs the orange juice. The whole team is gathered around the radio that’s been moved to the kitchen table and it feels like there’s a rain cloud hanging over the entire room. His dad avoids eye contact with him as he scans over the team in search of answers; Paul doesn’t flinch away as their gazes lock, but he looks sad, apologetic even. TK’s brows furrow and he slowly opens his lips. “Guys, what happened?”

His dad shakes his head slightly and Judd glances around the team expectantly, like he’s waiting for someone else to answer, and then he speaks up for them. “There’s a code 999 downtown.”

TK bites his lip and shakes his head slightly as he sets the orange juice down on the counter. “But it’s not… Who was it?”

“It’s an active shooter,” Paul says around a deep breath.

“What do you mean?” TK insists desperately as he searches Paul’s gaze for answers, fear mounting up inside of him and forming a choking lump in the back of his throat. Carlos’s patrol covers downtown, which means even if he’s not the one who’s been hit he is still currently responding to an active shooter situation. “Why aren’t we there? We should be there.”

“They haven’t called us in to respond,” his dad finally speaks up but doesn’t look up.

“But it’s an active shooter,” TK chokes. “We’re supposed to be there for- for help and clean up… and-”

“TK, there are already two stations responding to the call and SWAT is on route as we speak,” his father says softly. He finally looks up at TK, locking eyes with him, before addressing his fear. “I’m sure Officer Reyes is fine. He’s got a good head on his shoulders and knows what he’s doing.”

“But why aren’t we there?” TK repeats still unable to really wrap his mind around everything. They should be there. _He_ should be there.

“TK, we’re doing what we’re directed to do. If they call us in, we’ll go as fast as we can, okay?”

“No, it’s not okay!” TK cries frantically, his heart pounding in his throat. He needs to be there in case something happens. He needs to be there for Carlos. “You guys can sit on your asses as long as you want, but I’m going down there.”

“No, you’re not,” his father states authoritatively and steps between him and the exit. 

“You can’t stop me,” TK snaps, his voice almost raised to a shout as he tries to push past his dad. He doesn’t budge.

“I’m sorry son, I really am, but I can’t let you go,” his dad says sternly and wraps his arms around TK, half in a comforting embrace and half to keep him from leaving. “Captain Blake is at the scene. She said that she’d send updates when she can.”

“But I need to be down there, dad,” TK chokes, but gives up on his attempt to leave and hugs him instead. “What if something happens to him?”

“He’ll be okay,” his dad promises and wraps his arms around him a little tighter.

TK wants to believe his dad, but his mind is screaming at him that something’s wrong, or more wrong than just the active shooter. He needs to be there. He needs to know for sure that Carlos is okay and at least relatively safe. He’s about to try to argue again, but a voice coming in over the radio silences him.

_ “Officer down on the tenth floor, I repeat code 999 on the tenth floor, requesting backup and medical assistance asap!” _

TK bites his lips and clings to his dad as he buries his face in his neck. His chest is so tight from the panic rising up inside of him that he can barely breathe anymore. He can’t lose Carlos. He’s pretty sure that it’ll kill him in one way or another if Carlos dies.

“It’s okay son.”

***

“I did everything I could,” a young female officer says frantically as she beacons with bloody hands to Michelle from behind a tipped over table riddled with large bullet holes. “But the bullets went right through his vest and the bleeding- there’s so much blood…”

Michelle’s heart jumps into her throat as her gaze settles on Carlos laying on the carpeted floor of the office building with his blood staining the grey fabric beneath him.

“Oh no…” she chokes as she sinks to the floor next to him. “Carlos, sweetie, stay with me!”

His eyes are wide with pain and fear, and there’s blood dripping down the side of his pale face from his gaping mouth. Michelle quickly tears open her medical bag and whips out a wad of gauze to press against the bullet hole oozing blood in the right side of his chest.

“Hey,” Carlos wheezes and rests one shaking hand on Michelle’s. “It’s not safe…”

“Shhh,” Michelle soothes and takes a brief moment to give his head a gentle stroke before grabbing another bundle of gauze and pressing it against the wound in his stomach. “It’s okay, Carlos. Don’t worry about me, okay?”

It takes no time at all for his blood to soak through the pieces of gauze and soak against Michelle's hands. She can feel the heat of the blood even through the gloves on her hands, and there's so much of it.

“Is TK here too?” Carlos mumbles and his eyes flutter closed.

“No, but he’s waiting for you,” Michelle says urgently, her mind racing as she packs on more gauze. “He’s waiting for you, so you need to stay with me so you can see him, okay?”

Carlos’s breath hitches and he goes completely still. A kind of panic she’s never really felt before smacks down on top of her, knocking the breath out of her. When Iris went missing there’d been some panic but mostly grief and guilt; there’s always some amount of franticness when someone starts coding, she’s used to that; the closest she’s ever come to panicking on a call before now was when TK got shot, but even she’d been able to breathe properly and actually  _ think.  _ This right now, this is the most panicked she’s been in her entire life. Carlos isn’t just her best friend, he’s like her little brother, a little brother she’d die for, a little brother she can’t even begin to imagine losing even now as his heart stops beneath her hands.

“This is Captain Blake, I need assistance on the tenth floor and a medevac on the roof if at all possible,” she cries desperately into her radio and moves both her hands to Carlos’s chest to start compressions. She’s pretty sure no one’s going to come. The whole building is swamped with shooting victims and all the EMTs are already spread too thin over the building trying to help people, and the chances of them okaying a helicopter landing on the building is even more unlikely than someone coming to help her.

“Is he gonna die?” his partner asks quietly as Michelle desperately continues chest compressions.

“No, he’s not going to die,” she says sharply. “He’s not going to die. He’s gonna be fine… come on Carlos. Come back to me!”

***

“Do you want me to tell him?” Paul asks solemnly as soon as Michelle clicks off the radio.

“No,” Owen replies quietly. TK had gone upstairs shortly after the code 999 had come in over the radio; it'd been a reaction out of panic and fear of what would be said next. “I’ll tell him, but thanks for offering.”

“Are you sure?” Paul presses, his brows furrowed with concern.

“Yeah,” Owen swallows. “I’m his father and it- it needs to be me.”

Owen stands up slowly and makes his way to the stairs. He doesn’t want to have this conversation with TK; he knows it’s not going to be easy, this type of thing never is, and it shouldn’t even be happening. Part of him is tempted to go back and take Paul up on his offer, but he knows he can’t do that. He’s TK’s father. He needs to be the one to tell him.

TK is sitting on his bed with Buttercup curled up next to him; the dog’s head is rested on his lap and he’s stroking his head absently. The look on TK’s face almost makes Owen want to turn around and run back down stairs and take Paul up on his offer. The pain and understanding in his son’s gaze as they make eye contact crushes Owen, well crushes him more.

“He’s dead, isn’t he?” TK asks and ducks his gaze away from Owen’s as he sits down on the edge of his bed.

Owen reaches over and gently grabs TK’s hand in his and lets out a heavy sigh. “He’s in critical condition and in surgery.”

TK looks up at him, eyes full of desperation and frightened hope. “But it’s not looking good, is it?”

“I’m sorry, son,” Owen says quietly.

“Why does this keep happening?” TK spits bitterly and pulls away from Owen as he gets out of bed, startling Buttercup as he goes.

“TK-”

“No, you promised me everything would be okay if we moved down here, and you promised me Carlos was gonna be fine, but he’s not and nothing feels okay,” TK shouts before turning on his heels and fleeing the room.

“TK!” Owen calls and gets up to follow him.

“I just need space, dad,” TK calls over his shoulder as he ducks down the stairs.

“TK, wait,” Owen protests as he follows his son down the stairs.

“No, I’m going to the hospital and you’re not stopping me, okay?” TK says stopping just long enough to turn around and glare. There’s fire in his hurt green eyes.

“At least let me drive you,” Owen says, almost pleading.

“No dad, I need space,” TK replies shortly and then without another word he turns back around and leaves the station.

Owen sighs and hangs his head. He can hear Paul sigh behind him. “Maybe I should’ve let you talk to him.”

“It’s okay, Cap,” Paul says and rests a comforting hand on his shoulder. “It probably would’ve gone the same way for any of us.”

“I shouldn’t have told him it was going to be okay,” Owen says absently. He’s not sure what it’ll do to TK if Carlos’s surgery doesn’t end well, but he knows it’s not going to be good, and it scares him to think about it. The painfully familiar fear that TK might relapse again drifts into the back of Owen’s mind, and he shifts uncomfortably. Drugs are like playing russian roulette. Each shot you take your odds get worse, and TK’s already taken two shots. Owen’s not entirely sure he’ll pull through a third.

“You were comforting him,” Judd pipes up. “It’s not your fault that two dumbasses with guns decided to shoot up an office building.”

Owen runs one hand through his hair with a sigh before letting it fall to his side again. “I should go be after him.”

“I’ll hold down the fort,” Judd says helpfully.

Owen glances over at him and gives him a grateful nod. “Thank you.”

***

TK isn’t paying attention to where he’s going as he makes his way into the hospital and accidentally bumps straight into someone. 

“I… sorry-” he trails off as he realizes it’s Michelle that he’s just body slammed. He shakes his head slightly, trying to clear his mind that’s racing at 100 miles an hour. 

“TK?” She says questioningly and looks him over. There’s concern in her eyes as she looks him over. “Are you okay?”

He nods numbly and blinks his eyes, only now realizing that he’s crying. “Is Carlos...?” The question sticks in the back of his throat and chokes him off.

“Right,” Michelle says with a slight shake of her head. “Of course that’s why you’re here.” She seems to be mostly just talking to herself. Then she addresses TK more directly. “He’s still in surgery. I was going to stay but they still need me downtown.”

“So he’s gonna be okay?” TK asks absently. Surgery is a good thing. It’ll save him. That’s the way it has to work.

Michelle gives him a weak half smile before wrapping her arms around him. “I hope so.”

TK stiffens for a second before letting himself relax in her embrace. He can tell just from how tight she’s squeezing him that she’s hugging him more for her own comfort than his. He can’t really blame her though.

“Make sure you’re there when he wakes up,” Michelle chokes and finally pulls away from TK; she wipes a tear away from her cheek. “He loves you TK, and he’s going to need you.”

“Can’t you stay?” TK pleads. He doesn’t want to be alone right now and he even regrets storming out of the station to escape his father. Hell, he wants his dad here with him. The thought of sitting in that waiting room alone to await what could quite possibly be the worst news of his life is a daunting one and he hates it.

“I’m sorry. I really want to, but they still need me downtown; there are a lot of injured people who need help,” Michelle says apologetically and pats TK’s shoulder. “But you should call someone; you shouldn’t be alone.”

“Thanks, Michelle,” TK says absently as a feeling of numbness slowly crawls under his skin filling his thoughts with a thick haze and making the world seem to crumble around him into dismal sheets of grey and nothing. The only real feeling he has is the heartache in his chest; it makes him want to throw up.

“I wish I could stay-”

“It’s fine,” TK interrupts. “They need you. You should go.”

His chest tightens the further he walks into the hospital. The waiting room is flooded with people, some of them have minor injuries while others just look traumatized. They’re all probably there waiting for news on someone who was injured in the shooting, just like he is. He’s not alone in his feelings, but that’s not a comforting thought. He’s miserable and can’t breathe because the fear wrapping itself around him, strangling him and the panic constricting his chest and making his heart hammer at a hundred miles an hour. He doesn’t want anyone else to feel like this. He’d gladly suffer alone if it meant no one else had to feel like this: so helpless and trapped.

The feeling of helplessness is almost the worst part of what he’s feeling. He’s spent his entire life working a job where he has to be in control of pretty much everything even when everything is spinning out of control. He’s supposed to keep a straight mind in situations where the average would panic, and he’s always been good at that aspect of the job, but right now? Right now it seems like everything is spiraling in a crashing freefall and there’s nothing he can do. He is supposed to help people, and now that someone he loves is in grave danger, dying, there’s absolutely nothing he can do. He can’t do anything but pace.

TK lets the world fall away from him and he just paces, focusing only on taking one short breath after another as he places one foot in front of the other. He lets his mind run rampant from horrible possibility to horrible possibility, unable to stop himself from thinking the worst. Michelle had been really shaken which means it’s really bad. She doesn’t get shaken up over nothing.

“Excuse me, sir?”

TK ignores the voice calling to him until a hand reaches out and grabs his shoulder. He jumps and looks up in surprise and finds himself face to face with a young doctor or maybe a nurse.

“Are you here for Officer Reyes?” She asks, searching his gaze with concerned blue eyes.

TK swallows and takes a small step back. It’s way too soon for whatever she has to say to be good news.

“Yeah,” he chokes out, barely managing to form the word around the lump in his throat. “How is he?”

“He made it,” she says comfortingly, and TK nearly chokes on his sudden ability to breathe again.

“He’s going to be okay?” he breathes, almost frightened to ask for fear it’s all a dream and that his breath will blow it all away.

“He’s not out of the wood just yet,” the doctor replies with a hit reluctance in her voice. “He lost a lot of blood and surgery was rough. We don’t know when he’s going to wake up.”

“Can I please go see him?”

The doctor offers a slight smile. “Not just yet. He’s still in post-op, but as soon as we have him situated in ICU we’ll send a nurse out to get you.”

“Thank you,” TK chokes.

The doctor acknowledges his thanks with a small head nod.

“No, really,” TK blurts and grabs her hand. “Thank you. Thank you for saving him. Thank you for saving the love of my life.”

The doctor smiles. “It was my pleasure, and he’s a fighter.”

TK catches sight of glimpse of his dad coming into the waiting room and casts a quick glance at him before turning back to the doctor. “I uh- I gotta go.”

“That’s fine, I’ll send a nurse out as soon as it’s okay for you to see him.”

“Thank you,” TK says again before moving away and approaching his dad who is looking at him expectantly.

“What’s the news?” he asks as TK approaches him.

“He made it,” TK chokes, and he doesn’t know why, but tears come into his eyes. “He made it, dad.”

A relieved smile spreads across Owen’s face and he wraps his arms around TK and pulls him close

“I thought I was going to lose him,” TK chokes and buries his face in his dad’s shoulder. He can feel warm tears wetting his cheeks, but he doesn’t care. “I’m sorry I ran off like that…”

“Hey, it’s okay. It’s okay, son,” his dad replies soothingly and rubs his back. “It’s okay.”

TK tightens his arms around his dad and cries harder.

***

The first thing Carlos really feels as he wakes up is two hands clasping his and holding it tight. He doesn’t need to open his eyes to know whose it is. He lets himself smile and twitches his fingers slightly.

“Hey tiger,” he mumbles as he pries his heavy eyelids open. He’s little taken aback by how raspy his voice is.

“Hey,” TK chokes and then clears his throat. “How are you feeling?”

“High…” Carlos mumbles. Everything around him seems fuzzy and he can’t really feel anything but cushiony warmth. He also feels strangely happy and blissful, both are not really feelings that should be happening after taking two bullets to the body.

TK snorts and ducks his head with an amused look on his face.

“That would be the morphine.” It’s Michelle who says this. Carlos hadn’t even realized she was there, but morphine makes a lot of sense.

“It’s nice,” he mutters and glances up at Michelle who gently strokes his forehead.

“I bet,” she says lovingly with a smile full of relief. “I’ll be back in a little while. I’m going to go get a coffee.”

Carlos gives her grateful smile knowing that she’s vacating the room to give him and TK sometime.

“Hey,” TK says quietly and squeezes his hand pulling his attention away from Michelle who’s leaving the room. “You scared me.”

“Payback for you getting shot and scaring me,” Carlos mumbles trying to lighten the mood. He can tell from the look in TK’s eyes that there’s still a lot of residual fear left in him.

“I’m serious, Carlos,” TK sighs. “I thought you were dead and then I thought you were gonna die and then after all that I didn’t even know if you were going to wake up!”

“I’m okay, TK,” Carlos says comfortingly and reaches across the bed with his other hand.

“I know, I was just so scared I was going to lose you,” TK says with a mournful expression.

“It’s okay,”Carlos replies and grabs TK’s hand in his. “I’m okay now, and I’m sorry I scared you.” Carlos hesitates before adding, “and I’ll try not to get shot next time.”

“There better not be a next time,” TK says, seeming to relax some.

“Yes sir,” Carlos says with a sigh and lets his heavy eyelids drift closed again. “I love you, TK.”

He doesn’t have to see it to know his boyfriend is smiling. He can hear it in his voice. “I love you too.”

The last thing Carlos feels before drifting back to sleep is TK’s warm lips pressing against his forehead.


End file.
